Structures and the materials comprised by those structures are often evaluated for integrity and other physical properties using a variety of nondestructive evaluation techniques. These techniques include thermographic, optical, acoustic, radiographic (e.g., x-ray), and electromagnetic procedures.
Resistivity measurements may be helpful in evaluating the integrity of some materials since the resistivity of a surface may correlate to other physical phenomena, such as strain on the surface, thermal characteristics of the surface, photosensitivity of the surface, and physical integrity of the surface. However, many materials are non-conductive, or have very high resistivity. Consequently, the use of resistivity measurements to monitor the physical integrity of these materials may be ineffective.